As Tet approaches, beer market already fizzing

HCM City (VNS/VNA) -
With over one month to go for the 2019 Lunar New Year (Tet), the beer
market is becoming active with supermarkets and retailers starting to make
preparations for breweries sales campaigns.

A spokesperson for MM Mega Market told Vietnam
News that preparations are completed for Tet buying. The
wholesaler is striving to keep prices at the same levels as a year ago, he
said.

Volumes could increase by 5 percent this year
with domestic products dominating the market though MM Mega Market would be the
sole distributor of some foreign beers in the country, he said.

A Lotte spokesperson said the Korean supermarket
expects to sell 250,000 cases of beer in the first two months of next year.

Prices would remain unchanged except Heineken
and Tiger, whose prices have increased since the third quarter, the supermarket
said. Some 97-98 percent would be local products, it said.

E-commerce platforms said there has been a sharp
rise in the search for beer brands since the beginning of November.

Many online shopping companies have introduced
new beers for Tet with information about price and quality.

At that time, online-shopping companies said,
companies start seeking for products to present their partners while retailers
start their stockpile.

In downtown areas like District 1 and District
3, large retail shops are preparing for Tet by stocking up on
foreign beers like Desperados, Kaiserin, Royal Dutch, Budweiser and Hoegaarden.

According to retailers, beers from Asian
countries like Laos, Cambodia and Thailand like Singha, Chang, Leo, Angkor and
Beer Lao will be in high demand though their prices are slightly high. These
have come into the market in the past two or three years.

Nguyen Van Bom, a retailer in Binh Chanh district,
told Nguoi Lao Dong (The Labourer) newspaper that several new
brands are coming to the market every year.

They are sold in large retail shops and
supermarkets and often bought for gifting, he said, adding that the main sales
come from certain local brands.

Some breweries have already launched sales
programmes and promotions for the Lunar New Year.

Mikio Masawaki, general director of Sapporo
Vietnam, told Vietnam News that his company’s prices have not
changed though in the retail channel they could be a bit inconsistent.

He said the products his company would market
this Lunar New Year are Sapporo Premium both in a bottle and can, draft beer
and Blue Cap 330ml.

The company has said there would be a new
design so that they could be given as gifts. Sapporo Vietnam
estimates sales this year to be similar to last year.

Habeco has launched a promotion for Tet, offering
customers the chance to win prizes worth a total of 23.1 billion VND (1 million
USD).

According to the HCM City Department of Industry
and Trade, 42.2 million litres of beer will be consumed during Tet next
year, 30 percent higher than normal days.